How to Pick a Backsplash for Your Kitchen
Kitchen backsplashes started out as protection for the painted walls behind appliances and sinks. Now they are as much a part of kitchen design as the appliances and lighting. Whether you choose a backsplash to install yourself or for a contractor to install, the more information you have, the better choice you can make. Picking kitchen backsplashes is not just about looks; they are a functional part of the kitchen, so the type of material is as important as how it looks. Remember also that once you pick a backsplash, you will have to live with it for awhile, so take your time. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Start by browsing design magazines and looking at the model kitchens in home improvement and tile stores. Get a good working knowledge of the different options available to you, and let yourself be inspired by the professionals.
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Decide whether you want the backsplash to cover all of the kitchen walls between appliances and cabinets, or whether you are highlighting one or two work areas, like behind the sink and stove.
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Work up a budget. How much money you can spend will play a large part in what material you choose. If you are spending the average amount of a middle-class tax return, you will not be able to afford a mural made of hand-painted tiles or a glass-block backsplash that requires removing and reinforcing part of a wall.
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Choose your material. Ceramic tile is the most popular, and among the least expensive. Other choices are laminate to match your counters, metal or metal laminate, polished stone, and natural stone.
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Respect your reality. A household with small children and two working parents is not the best place for real copper paneling that needs to be polished often, and a house full of messy cooks is maybe not the best place for hand-painted murals on drywall, unless you install glass on top of them.
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Pick your color and pattern. A color that contrasts or coordinates with your counter tops is the most traditional, but there are no hard and fast rules. Get a color wheel from your local home improvement or paint store if you are unsure as to which colors are cool, and which are warm. Stay within the same tones for the most polished look.
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Tips & Warnings
Do a practice wall. If you have access to a digital camera and color printer, you can print out life-sized photos of your tiles and tape them up to see if you like the pattern you have chosen once it is on the wall.
Never use a contractor that is not licensed and bonded, and always get a written guarantee of his work
References
Resources
- Photo Credit kitchen image by Gina Smith from Fotolia.com
